Visiting Dad

I did not get the chance to write on Friday since we were in Brenham, TX visiting my sister and my dad. I say it in that order because that is how the time actually worked out. Dad is in a Mental Care Unit in Brenham. It was a difficult decision to put him there but there was no good alternative if we were to provide the round-the-clock supervision he now requires.

Mama and I sat and talked with him for about and hour Friday evening (until he was called to supper) and again Saturday morning. It may be difficult to understand why a nine hour round trip to visit someone resulted in so little time spent with that person, but it is very difficult for Dad to carry on a conversation for more than that length of time. 

Even at that, what conversation there is can be very difficult to follow because he cannot remember names, dates, times, geographic setting, relationships, or even the names of food items, common articles of clothing, furniture pieces (like tables and chairs). He does love to hear me tell stories from my memories of him and Mom and my childhood.

So, with a limited ability to connect vocabulary words in a sentence, it is nearly impossible to convey a thought but he is not so lost that he is not aware that his intent or thought is not getting through - and he does try to express himself even with the realization that he is not putting the right words together for us to understand his meaning. It is beyond my ability to understand the frustration he might feel. But he still has a kind heart, smiles easily and apologizes for his lack of memory. 

He did mention that he is lonely. With Mom gone (after 67 years of marriage) and Martha and her daughter Trisha no longer keeping a 24/7 vigil, he has no one who he feels is near enough to him to hear him when he  has a need or a question; to truly care for him. There are personnel and other residents there, but they are not always sitting close at hand. To them he is a stranger and vice versa. 

It suppose it was a good visit. It encouraged Martha. It lets me know how to pray for Dad and for Martha.

The picture is of Dad with Savanna (Cori’s youngest) at Mom’s wake in February this year.